House with statue of Michealango' DavidView of Mas Cabardes from the calvaryLong distance view of Mas CabardesMas Cabardes octagonal church tower  
Mas Cabardes - Aude

Jacques Sablairolles
JacJacques was of Mas Cabardès for thirty years.  He retired in 2014.   He has oversaw many major projects in the village, for example introduction of mains drainage for all properties and renewal of much of the water supply. He comes from an old established community family who have been serving the village for almost two hundred years.
In addition to his public duties Jacques is a keen gardener, and is a major stalwart in the local hunting teams.  During the season he is often seen with his red cap and a rifle over his shoulder.
Denis Lausse
Denis can be safely regarded as the centre of the village. He keeps the village shop which is truly the heart of the village and is an extraordinary place. What looks as though it would have only the smallest possible range of goods is in fact a treasure trove. In the improbable event that Deni does not have something you require you can be sure that he will have it the next day. His range of meats and cheeses have to be tried to be believed. No one who has sampled his Brebis or Rocquefort cheeses will ever be content with supermarket fare again. Steak from Denis is a treat to which we look forward on every visit and the riellette d'oie is superb. He tells us that the beef is in fact Irish but the Irish inhabitants of the village assure us that they have never been able to get that quality at home. It is a total mystery how he can with such a small catchment area always manage to provide such superb fresh food.

In addition to the fresh food there is everything household that you might need, a range of clothing, and even a selection of English books. It is my belief that if you asked him for an O ring for a carburettor for a 1961 Ford Cortina he would be annoyed if he did not have it in stock!  Not only is the shop a place to buy things but it is also a place for dissemination of information. When we had a disaster with our plumbing totally destroying our central heating I mentioned it to Denis. Before the day was out four people had offered us the use of heaters until we could get ours fixed. Mas Carbardès is that sort of village and the epicerie is that sort of shop.  
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